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LinkedIn has become the more prominent way that many people are seeking jobs and finding people to recruit. It is a platform that heightens the concept of a traditional résumé by constantly being updated and interacted with. Over the past few weeks, we’ve looked at the how-to of the basics of your profile as well as networking and job search. In this blog, we’ll touch on what exactly stands out to recruiters.

With how many people are on LinkedIn, it’s vital that you are able to be set apart enough so that employers and recruiters see how you could be a good addition to their company. That being said, LinkedIn isn’t much different from your résumé in terms of how little time is spent going from one person to the next.

Just like a traditional résumé, recruiters are sorting through potentially hundreds of potential candidates. With this in mind, you have to catch the eye of an employer. By having a brand and tone to your profile, you create consistency. Each company and employer is going to be looking for something different, but if you have a brand that matches who you are, you’re more likely to find a good fit.

One of the most important elements to your profile is your photo. Statistics have shown that around one-fifth of the time someone views your profile is spent looking at the photo. Seeing your face allows someone to feel more personally connected to you, and you want your face to come with your name and brand, so having a solid profile photo matters. Don’t have too distracting of a photo. You want it to be just a portrait of you, and the background should have minimal going on. If the background is busier, it should match who you are and you should be what’s in focus.

Recruiters will see that your profile is complete and that you are engaged with it. The more you post and interact, the more frequently people will see your profile. Once on your profile, you want words, phrases, and other things that show you are well-accomplished. You want your accomplishments and experience to match what you’re interested in and applying for. Ultimately, showing that you are passionate and excited will bode well with potential future employers.

As a continuation to a series of blogs about LinkedIn, let’s dive in with what it looks like to utilize LinkedIn. Once you have set-up your profile, your next step is learning to navigate the site. There are plenty of ways to connect with employers and find potential jobs to apply for. This short post will help lay some of the foundation of ways to get started with this process.

||It’s Never Too Early To Start||

Building a network is important, but it isn’t necessarily easy. It takes time to meet people, get your name out there, and feel like you have several connection. Start the process early. Take time to connect with professors, even if they are not necessarily in your specific career, they often have contacts with former students as well as plenty of employers or people who can connect you further. Additionally, don’t be afraid to talk about your career goals with family or in other circles of people in the workforce. Just expressing your interests can often go a long ways.

||Connect||

Don’t be shy. Add people to your network. Even if you don’t know someone super well, it doesn’t hurt to connect with them on LinkedIn. The more connections you have, the wider your pool of potential is. With more people on your network, you have more people who will see your posts, interact with your profile, and get your name circulating.

||Be Bold||

Reach out to people on LinkedIn. Send personal messages to people letting them know you’re job searching and if they have any connections to help you out. You should never simply ask someone for a job, but reaching out to people is always a good idea to build your network. Customize each message you send to show that you value the person you’re speaking with. Better yet, reach out to a recruiter on LinkedIn. Confidence shows initiative. After applying to a job, let the recruiter know and ask a question or engage with them. Don’t be afraid of putting yourself out there. The boldness may just land you the job.

||Browse Around||

Use LinkedIn as a resource to find potential companies you’re interested in. Plenty of employers use LinkedIn and frequently make posts about their companies projects and initiatives. You can get a pretty great sense about employers based off of their profile pages. Follow different companies and people that interest you. You can then share those posts and interact even more with companies that you would want to work for.

||Search||

Lastly, you can always search for jobs. You can narrow down filters to make it more applicable to you, and then you can often apply straight from LinkedIn to different opportunities. Try and follow-up and make a connection within the company in order to have a more personal relationship to the job you’re applying for.

There are so many ways that LinkedIn can help you find a job. The more you interact with the site, the more comfortable and easy it will be to understand how to use the site to its full potential.

LinkedIn has become a vital tool in getting your face out there for employers to see. Additionally, the site serves as a way for you to seek out job opportunities and connect with employers after an interview or career fair.

The first step to making your LinkedIn account worthwhile is understanding how to set up your profile. While there are many things you can do over time to embellish your profile, let’s start with some basics.

||Headline and Photo||

You want to grab the viewers attention by using a short statement as your headline outlining who you are and what you’re looking for. For example, say your major (i.e. Business major) followed by what kind of job you’re looking for (i.e. seeking a position in public relations). You also want to make sure you’re well-represented in your photo. This photo should either be a professional head shot or resemble one. You want to be well-dressed and have a background that isn’t distracting.

||Give a good summary||

When you edit the summary section of your profile, utilize this space to quickly showcase your goals and career aspirations. The paragraph should be concise, give some information about your studies, and also showcase your unique self. Think of this as the start of your best cover letter.

||Fill it in||

Take some time to fill out your profile. Put in all of your education experience as well as extracurricular activities. Possibly most important is that you add in your work experience and volunteer work as well. The descriptions of your work should be similar to the bullet points of your résumé, but you want to make them more personable and put those skills and experience in paragraph form.

||Be active||

Treat this like your professional social media. This means you should interact with posts, share blogs you’ve written or articles you’ve read, and update people on new positions and professional moves. Engaging on LinkedIn gets your name surfacing more and allows employers to see your interests. This is also a great way to let people see the projects you’ve done that you’re passionate about and have spent time working hard on.

||Be Yourself||

Finally, it goes without saying, but it’s important to showcase who you are on your profile. You still want to keep things professional, but share things that you’re genuinely interested in and not just what will “make you look good.” Make your abilities and skills as well as your personality evident to employers.

If you ever have questions about your LinkedIn profile, you are always welcome to stop in at the Boerigter Center to ask questions or get feedback. Drop-in hours run from 3:00-4:30 PM every weekday. Stay tuned for a post about how to use LinkedIn to network and job search coming soon!